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There’s an irony in the fact that when the Aston Martin V12 Vantage was launched last year, it was barred from sale in the USA. The irony being that with this car, Aston was following a time-honored American concept. Take your most compact bodyshell, and ram under the hood your most beef-fed, honkin’ engine. It’s called the musclecar. Of course, Aston’s interpretation of the musclecar theme is rather more suave, sophisticated and aristocratic than, say, a ’70 Chevy Chevelle SS454, but the thinking behind it ain’t so very far removed.

So why didn’t it come here? Because as originally engineered for the rest of the world, the front end of the car was so densely packed with engine that there wasn’t the space for the structures needed to meet US crash regulations. At the required barrier impact speed, the dummy’s chest recorded a borderline deceleration figure.

But customers worldwide were meanwhile chomping to get at the car, so the engineers got to thinking. Analysis of the computer models and turned up a location where some extra aluminum longitudinal members could be installed to change the load path and soften the deceleration. It tested well, and this car is the result. The extra weight is insignificant. And the performance, handling and styling are unaffected by the crash mods.

As jaw-dropping as ever, then.

The engine in question is a V12 of 5.9-liters, kicking out 510 horsepower, enough for a claimed zero-to-60mph time of 4.1 seconds. M/T has yet to test it for zero-to-60 under our paradigm. The rear-mounted transmission is a six-speed manual only, despite optional AMT and full-auto appearing in other Astons. The V12 Vantage keeps things relatively simple: there are none of the adaptive dampers of the DBS, no transmission choices, not a lot that’s menu-driven.

But a single sport button on the dash does call up a more aggressive throttle map (not needed) and awaken the exhaust bypass earlier in the rev range: please deploy this Ride-of-the-Valkyries option sparingly as you drive through quiet villages. The engine reaches peak power at 6500, so it’s not a screamer like the Ferrari 599 V12 or BMW M’s V10. Instead, even from the low-to-mid ranges, it wraps its big torquey arms around you and throws you to the horizon. Which is why it seldom matters that the gearshift isn’t the slickest ever. Under light throttle, you hear the all that valvegear chattering entertainingly away, but floor the throttle and it’s a multi-layered baritone howl all the way. Joy.

The chassis feels perfect for quick road use. For a start, the suspension isn’t too stiff: the springs and dampers allow the tires to do their work even over broken rural pavement. The steering transmits a delicious impression of the available front-end grip, which does endlessly satisfying things for your confidence. The engineers attribute ths characteristic to the Pirelli P Zero Corsa rubber, but we suspect they’re being modest.

The stability control has a track position (and a full-off) as well as the normal road setting. We found the normal setting is expertly calibrated, giving us all the corner-exit speed we needed on the road. ‘Track’ was strictly for showboating out of second-gear hairpins. Mind you, this was in the dry. Those Pirellis will soon be overwhelmed in the wet.

Talking of the track, this road-friendly chassis doesn’t go weak-kneed when taken to a circuit. Not even to the world’s most testing, the Nordschleife of the Nurburgring, where MT also drove the V12, and, for good measure, took a hotly exhilarating ride with one of the circuit’s own full-time race instructors at the wheel. Carbon-ceramic discs didn’t wilt; the P-Zeros didn’t run to jelly. There’s some understeer in tight bends, as you’d imaging in a car this small with a V12 over the front axle, but in most corners, the throttle will tip the balance benignly to the rear.

But given Aston Martin‘s high-rise pricing strategy, you’d hope for more than a good drive. You get it. The Vantage’s staructure always feels strong, its controls impart a sense of well-being through their precision-engineered actions. The exterior is clothed in a startingly sculpted set of panels, and their finish and jointing is subtler than mass-production could manage.

Same goes for the interior. As this is the most sporting version, it’s equipped with a pair of deep bucket composite-shelled seats, but as it’s an Aston Martin they adjust electrically. There’s no vinyl anywhere – the dash, doors and console are all faced in stitched leathers. The dial faces are beautiful aluminum, backlit in beautiful steel-blue, the only issue being that at twilight the illumination of their numerals and needles is exactly as bright as their faces, and they become entirely illegible. ‘Honestly, officer…’

Maybe at that time of the day you might like to just slow right down and tickle your auditory canals with the optional 1000W Bang and Olufsen hi-fi. It’s a triumph of function and integration, unlike the ergonomically disastrous and thoroughly aftermarket-feeling navigation system.

The unexpectedly strong demand for the V12 Vantage outside North America has come from two groups – existing Aston owners who want something harder and faster, and people coming from Porsche 911 GT3s and the like who previously found Aston Martins a bit gentlemanly for their taste.

No doubt the same will apply over here, with the addition of Viper or Corvette Z06 or ZR1 owners who don’t want to sacrifice their gut-wrenching front-engined power (we said this car followed an American template), but fancy it wrapped in a gorgeous, jewel-like package. So jewel-like that the ask of 180 Large seems almost reasonable.